Ryan Kaine is on the edge…
When danger follows you home, nowhere is safe.
Ryan Kaine and Lara Orchard's trip to Denmark for a combat medic course takes a sinister turn when Lara becomes the target of a vindictive fellow student. Meanwhile, back in Norwich, their young associate Danny Pinkerton faces off against a ruthless loan shark and his thugs to protect an injured friend.
As Kaine and Lara confront escalating threats, including a brutal attack and a high-stakes car chase, Danny orchestrates a daring heist to bring down the loan shark's operation. With lives on the line and enemies closing in from all sides, the team must rely on their skills, wits, and unwavering loyalty to survive.
Just as they think they've earned a well-deserved break, a distress call from one of their protected witnesses proves that for Kaine and his team, the mission never ends.
A heart-pounding episode in the Ryan Kaine series.
If you like Lee Child, Jack Lively, and Robert Ludlum, you’re going to find the Ryan Kaine series compulsively addictive.
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Chapter 1
Saturday 3rd April – Evening
Blu Skandia Hotel, Valdemsgade, Aarhus, Denmark
Ryan Kaine slowed the hired BMW X4 and turned right onto Valdemsgade. The low, evening sun sparkled out of a powder-blue sky. It looked warm enough from the air-conditioned comfort of the car, but the dashboard’s external temperature display showed four degrees Celsius, promising a chilly night and an almost inevitable ground frost. A bitter, Scandinavian evening in early April. No surprises there, but he’d made sure they packed accordingly. Kaine had visited Denmark on NATO missions a few times and knew the challenges the local weather could provide.
“Are we nearly there yet?” Lara asked from low in the passenger seat, her voice deliberately wheedling and childlike.
Kaine shot her a sideways glance and smiled, still struggling to come to terms with her new look. She
d had her hair shortened and darkened specifically for the course. The new style looked good enough, but he missed the flowing, auburn tresses.
Still, needs must.
“Not long now. Couple of minutes.”
She returned his smile, but it seemed forced.
A dark blue Volvo closed on his rear bumper. Kaine fed a little more petrol into the engine and nudged their speed up to the local limit, fifteen kph. After all the motorway and dual-carriageway driving they’d covered since the airport, it felt like little more than walking pace.
“Nervous?” he asked.
“A little.” She nodded. “It’s going to be tough. The things I put myself through.”
“You’ll walk it. I have every faith.” He nodded his encouragement.
“Ten continuous days of intensive training with assessments at the end of each day. It’ll be like being back at veterinary college. I struggled badly enough then, and I was a lot younger. Only a kid.”
“I’ll say it again. You’ll walk it.”
“I hope so.”
She turned her head to stare at the low-level, commercial buildings flowing past the BMW’s windows. Single-storey blocks, lights off, shutters lowered. Closed for the night and ready for the morning.
“You’ve been sweating over medical textbooks for months. You’ll be the best-prepped medic on the course. And as for the strength and fitness side of things, you’re as strong as any rookie I’ve ever worked on. You’re ready, love. I promise.”
She turned to face him again, eyes downcast.
“Thanks, but—”
“No ‘buts’. You’ll be fine.” He winked. “Hopefully.”
She sighed. “Thanks for the vote of confidence.”
“If you’re that worried about it, we could spend the night in the hotel, and head straight back to France in the morning. There’s no need to put yourself under so much pressure.”
Lara set her jaw.
“Not a chance, buster. I’m doing this course, and that’s all there is to it.”
“That’s my girl,” he said, allowing her another encouraging grin.
Following filter arrows painted on the road, Kaine indicated right and they turned into the forecourt of the Blu Skandia Hotel, Aarhus’ most expensive and exclusive hotel. He parked in one of the bays marked in both Danish and English as, “Residents – Drop Off Only”.
The concierge, a young, blond man wearing a top hat and a frock coat—both in a fetching shade of light blue—stepped through the revolving doors and approached their car. He opened the front passenger’s door for Lara.
“Doctor Sloane?” he asked.
“Yes,” she said, looking mystified.
The Blu Skandia’s online booking process required them to provide photo ID and details of their vehicle. Kaine knew what to expect, but he hadn’t forewarned Lara. Along with her ongoing, rigorous, exercise programme, she’d spent the previous fortnight cramming, adding to her already extensive knowledge of human anatomy, physiology, and pharmacology. He hadn’t wanted to burden her with unnecessary information and imagined that the Blu Skandia’s personal touch would go down rather well.
“I’m Robert. Welcome to the Blu Skandia Hotel,” the concierge said in faultless English and stepped back to allow her out of the car. “I hope you have a pleasant stay.”
“Thank you, Robert,” she said, reaching for her matching, designer handbag and vanity case—both real, both ridiculously expensive, but essential to maintain their cover. Besides which, Lara deserved some pampering.
Kaine hit the button on the dashboard to unlock and raise the Beemer’s tailgate. He had to open his own door, but just about managed the feat without assistance.
“Asger!” Robert called, signalling to the uniformed porter waiting near the entrance with a baggage trolly. The man hurried forwards to collect their luggage—three large, designer suitcases all matching Lara’s hand baggage, two for her, one for Kaine.
Kaine retrieved his laptop case from the back seat, joined Lara and Robert on the pavement, and watched Asger load the suitcases onto the trolley. The porter treated the cases with a great deal of respect, not wanting to scratch such expensive pieces of overwrought nonsense. Kaine could have managed with a couple of Bergens.
“It’s okay to park here?” Kaine asked.
Robert smiled and led them to the hotel’s revolving doors.
“Frederik, one of our valets”—he pointed to another uniformed man—“will take your vehicle to our underground parking facility. There’s no need to worry, Mr O’Keefe, Frederik is a first-rate driver, as are all of our valets. During your stay, we shall have your vehicle fully detailed. It is a complimentary service we offer to our premium guests.”
Meaning, they included a car wash and valet as part of their exorbitant pricing structure.
Kaine smiled at the man and shrugged it off. He and Lara didn’t often have the chance to luxuriate, and he intended to make the most of their extended stay in Aarhus—when she wasn’t neck deep in simulated gore and medical textbooks.
Robert waved them through the doors and followed close behind. The three of them headed to the reception desk—a white, marbled affair that stood polished and gleaming under the subdued, mood lighting. Asger brought up the rear and rolled the loaded trolly towards the bank of polished, stainless-steel lift doors.
The receptionist, a dark-haired beauty with a dazzling smile, welcomed them with a well-rehearsed spiel, before handing Kaine and Lara a keycard, and ending with, “If there is anything we can do to improve your stay, please don’t hesitate to ask. The reception desk is staffed at all times.”
“Thank you,” Kaine said, pocketing his card. “Dr Sloane and I will be leaving the hotel each morning at nine o’clock and will need breakfast served in our suite at six thirty sharp.”
The woman’s smile didn’t falter.
“But of course, Mr O’Keefe,” she said. “Simply make your choice from the breakfast menu overnight or one hour before service. Chef Marcel will be delighted to oblige.”
Kaine nodded and turned away.
Robert walked them towards Asger at the lifts and held out his hand. Kaine took out his wallet, assuming the concierge expected a tip.
“No, no, Mr O’Keefe,” he said, straight-faced. “I need your car keys … for Frederik.”
“Ah, I see.” Kaine retrieved his key fob from his pocket and handed it across.
Robert dropped a little half-bow and slid away towards the revolving doors, leaving Kaine and Lara with the silently efficient Asger, who had already summoned the lift and rolled the trolly into the carriage.
Once inside, Asger pressed the button marked “PH”, the doors slid together on silent bearings, and the lift raced upwards so quickly, it took Kaine’s stomach a moment to catch up.
Within seconds, an electronic chime announced their arrival at the Penthouse Suite. The lift stopped, and the doors retracted to reveal a small lobby with a single wide door. Asger swiped an entry card over the reader and allowed them through to their exclusive accommodation for the duration of the course.
Asger rolled the trolley into the master bedroom and asked if they required room service to help them unpack. Kaine declined the offer. The last thing he needed was to try to explain away the surveillance gear they’d brought with them on the drive from France.
Before leaving, Asger gave them a quick tour of the suite, showing them the emergency exit and explaining how the fire door operated. On the way out, he pointed to the control panel on the wall.
“For privacy, you can press this button”—he pointed to a red switch on the panel—“and it will light up the ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign above the door outside. It will also prevent anyone entering the suite without your express permission.”
“There’s an emergency override, I imagine?”
The porter nodded. “The housekeeping staff have master keys, but will not use them when the sign is lit except, as you say, in an emergency. The sign can only be activated from the inside.”
“Thank you, Asger.”
Once the porter had left, with a healthy tip, Kaine marched straight to the picture window with its panoramic view overlooking the less-built-up, north-eastern quarter of Aarhus. It proved to be every bit as perfect as he’d hoped from his study of the hotel’s website. With only one day before the course started, he wouldn’t have wanted to relocate their base of operations at such short notice.
“That was generous,” Lara said.
“What was?” Kaine asked.
“The tip.”
“Probably, but we’re high-rollers. We love splashing the cash. It gives us great pleasure to throw our money around to ensure that we receive great service from the ‘help’.” He shrugged and bent to unzip his case. “Besides that, it’ll ensure our stay here is as comfortable as they can make it. The next ten days are going to be exhausting for you, and all I’m going to be doing is lazing around on my fat arse.”
“Your backside isn’t fat,” she said, checking out his rear end in a full-length mirror in the walk-in wardrobe that was bigger than his safehouse in Camden. “Not in the slightest.”
“Thank you, dear,” he said, sighing.
“Some of my old girlfriends would have called them ‘buns of steel’.”
“Okay, that’s enough. You’ll make me blush.”
Lara laughed.
Zip undone, Kaine opened his suitcase and started unpacking all the surveillance equipment he needed to maintain a watching brief on the most important member of his team—Lara Belinda Orchard.
#
It took an hour to lay out, set up, and connect the equipment to the hotel’s Wi-Fi, and a further thirty minutes to receive Corky’s assurance that the system was fully secure and cleared for use. Through it and the satellite coverage, Kaine would have a perfect, bird’s-eye view of a specific area of the university’s campus—some fifteen hundred metres distant as the crow flew. An area devoted to the practical components of the combat medic course that would occupy Lara’s full attention for the following week and a half.
“Thanks, Corky,” Kaine said to the smiling image on the laptop’s screen.
“Happy to help, Mr K. If you need ol’ Corky, he’s only a comms call away. Cheerio, Doc. Knock ’em dead on Monday.” His cheeks plumped as he cranked out a cheery smile. “But Corky don’t mean that literally, mind.”
His high-pitched chuckle cut off when Kaine ended the connection.
“Everyone’s a comedian,” Lara said through a yawn. “Okay, Ryan. After a day’s travel, I need a shower.”
“As do I. Which bathroom are you nabbing?” Kaine asked, trying his best to look innocent. The Penthouse Suite boasted three bedrooms, all with ensuites.
“I’ll take the master,” she said, smiling and moving closer. “And so will you.”
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COLLAPSE
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